Sunday, 18 November 2018

My emergency bleached hair care plan and mini wish list/haul

So gang, I don't know if it's noticeable on the blog, but since cutting my hair short, it has a) got a lot shorter (I'm still not used to it) and b) got a bit thinner. I have been vaguely trying to grow it out, but I'm still bleaching it so I'm not particularly expecting miracles length-wise. My hair tends to go in seasons- from feeling really happy and smooth to feeling dry, sad, and yet still somewhat greasy, mmm. So a couple of weeks ago, my hair was feeling really dry and sad, so I decided to ramp up my hair routine and take even more care than normal of my poor abused hair.Of course, I know that bleaching hair isn't good for it.
I know. But, I do try and take good care of my hair so this recent blah period really upset me! I'd been really stressed in general and not sleeping that well, so my hair getting really tangly was super sad.

The other thing is that right before I got my hair cut, I had my first (and hopefully only) experience with messing up a bit bleaching my hair. (!!!!!!!) I mean once in six years is kind of an ok failure rate but it's my hair and it matters a lot to me. You know? So I'm v cross with myself. Basically what happened is that I accidentally bought 40 vol (12%) developer (hairdressers, feel free to scream at me) instead of my usual 30 vol, and 40 vol is only really supposed to be used for thick, hard to lift hair (which mine isn't). And so I've got a kind of band of weak hair that's more likely to break and there's not much I can do apart from sit and wait a couple of months until it grows out. I didn't have a 'Youtube horror story video' amount of breakage, but some of it has broken- not all at once, but over a few months I've noticed a bit more shedding than normal, and I can notice broken sections, most noticeably around my temples. A benefit of shorter hair is that the broken bits are only a few months away from blending in again, luckily. (actually, writing this now, I definitely need to stop trying to grow it longer until this band has grown out). I had an (ill-advised) bob back in the natural hair days, and that took me like actually 4 or 5 years to grow out- my hair was quite slow growing anyway, even before the bleach, so I know it's not going to grow like crazy any time soon- I just want to keep it as thick and healthy as possible.

I normally do take a lot of care of my hair, so this was just a step up from my normal Bleached hair care routine - I'll still be using mostly the same products I mentioned in that post, buut I am also going to invest in some more intense products as well.

This is how I got my hair feeling happier and back to normal:

I'm still heat styling it a bit// My hair takes hours to air dry and is v prone to break when it's wet. (bleaching it makes it extra pourous so harder to dry). Also I can keep it between washes for longer when it's been heat styled a bit because then it's less tangly. I'm blow drying it on cold, and I've turned the heat on my straightener down from 'max' to 'thin'... because, well, it's got thinner. I'm trying to straighten it or do loose curls rather than big voluminous curls, which is hard because more curls make my hair look like it's got a lot more volume. When I straighten it, I tend to do big chunks of hair, and it's all finished two minutes or so, so it's definitely less damaging.

Put it up more// A testament to the fact that it has grown is that I can put it in a teeny tiny ponytail or an edgy half bun. This goes without saying, but it means less heat styling is needed, and I also end up fiddling with it less (which is my go-to habit when I'm stressed). Obvs not putting it up tightly or using hairbands with metal clasps. And luckily it's autumn, the season of cosy hats and beanies ;)

Try and go an extra day between washes// this is hard atm, because my hair seems to get drier and tanglier the longer I leave it, and tangles= breakage. I wash it every other day recently, and I want to try and get this down to once every three days, although I know some bleached hair gals that make it last all week.

Massage my scalp a bit more// to stimulate blood flow and all that

Lay off the silver shampoo/ coloured shampoo// I've been using silver shampoo and purple/ pink shampoo a lot recently, but I'm going to cut down to once a week only. It's drying and tbh if I go back to white, my hair won't need so much silver shampoo anyway, compared to recently when I've been tinting it pink with rosé shampoo.

Buy some Olaplex 1 and 2 (or knock off)// As a lovely commenter pointed out on my Olaplex no. 3 review. the 3 is basically a deep conditioner, whereas 1 and 2 focus on actually preventing and repairing damage. I'm going to take their advice and invest in some! (also, if you're reading this, thank you and please tell me your ig!!)

Tame my bed head without heat// Now my hair is shorter, I get crazy sticking up hair in the mornings, and I've found a heat-free way to tame it: just spray the offending section of hair with water and clip it down until it dries. Not as sleek as heat styling, but needs must!Sleep on a silk scarf// This is a tip I often see floating around, and now's the time I'm finally going to try it. The top/back of my hair could do with a break from getting tangled with all the tossing and turning in bed. (I've been trying this for about a week and it's actually been pretty good so far- it's reduced the aforementioned bed head for sure).

Keep cutting it// I snip off any split ends I find, because if you leave them, they'll get bigger and break off anyway so it's best to get regular trims. I also just snipped a little off the bottom of my hair, and although I only took about half a centimetre off, it made my hair look instantly sooo much thicker and fuller! V happy. I normally cut my own hair, but I'm finding it a lot harder now my hair is so short (cutting the back is a nightmare) so I left longer in between trims than normal. But, it looks so much better when you keep trimming it every few weeks.Try not to use too much dry shampoo// This is a hard one to balance with trying to wash it less often, but dry shampoo can also dry out your hair, so I'm trying to keep it for a last resort, at least for now.

Eat well// I don't fully know the nutrition, but I think things like jelly are supposed to be good for healthy hair and nails. Obvs do your research, guys. But I think in general eating well and sleeping enough is important.

Stop touching my hair// suuch a silly habit, but kind of hard to fix- I need to stop touching my hair and stop running my hands through it as it makes it more greasy and makes me want to wash it more often.

Leave my hair masks in for longer// I used to have a once a week hair mask sesh, where I left hair masks in my hair for hours at a time. And I've got a bit lazy- now I use hair masks regularly, often just going in there with a hair mask instead of a conditioner, but I've got lazy and often leave them for only 10-15 minutes or so.

Splash out on Philip Kingsley Elasticiser// This has been touted my many people as an amaaazing product for damaged hair, and last time I bought a pricy hair product, it was the Olaplex no.3 which was... ok. Like it was a good hair mask, but no miracle worker. So I'm a bit scared to make another big investment, but I think this is a shout.

Go to a proper hairdresser// I'm going to be getting paid soon, after years of being a poor student, so I want to invest in going and getting my hair cut properly sometimes. I do love doing my hair myself, as it's super satisfying when it goes well, but it's soo hard to cut the back of your hair when it's short.

Do a deep cleansing shampoo once every while// This seems counter intuitive, as a deep cleansing shampoo might seem harsh on your hair, but product build up isn't great either- it will weigh your hair down and make it look and feel worse, and apparently it can also contribute to hair breakage. So I'm going to use my Toni and Guy Cleanse Advanced Detox shampoo once a month or so, followed with a hair mask obvs.

Also, I was in Soho the other day, so I couldn't resist heading into my fave Bleach London to pick up a couple of supplies:

Beer Shampoo// Smells great (not at all like beer, to my relief) this supposedly reduces breakage and strengthens hair, and tbh my hair could do with all the help it can get. I'm not expecting miracles, but I needed a new shampoo anyway, so :)

Old Blue Last// this is like a protein shot for hair, I've used it a couple of times before. To be honest, whilst it is pricy at £6 for a 10ml treatment, my hair is in need of TLC recently so I think it's worth it. I wouldn't necessarily bother with stuff like this unless your hair is feeling sad though- personally I only use it a couple of times a year, but this time, my hair was crying for it, and it felt immediately better. Bleach have released other one-time treatments, but I've only tried this and the reincarnation mask- I'm not entirely sold on the syringe-packaged ones. And tbh considering this is £6 for one treatment, I should have just got the Philip Kingsley elasticiser because it's also a protein treatment and is probs better value for money, as you get more than one treatment in the tube. Although Old Blue Last is definitely a good shout.

I am also toying with (whisper it) going to a more dark blonde if my hair doesn't manage to grow out thicker in a few months. But I love my hair this colour, so I'm going to fight for it! Also if any fellow bleached hair friends have any care advice, lemme know <3

Thanks for reading this post! It has a lot of feelings in it for a hair post, ahaha :) Next time's post will probably be a bit more chill!
-Amy xoxo

(p.s. I know I bang on about Bleach London a lot, but it's because it's formulated specifically for bleached hair, and it's ok price wise, and also.... their branding is v edgy and amazing and I am a sucker for nice packaging. I'm not sponsored by them or anything... Wish I was though innit)

Hello again! I'm the anonymous hair-obsessed commenter who suggested adding Olaplex to your bleach; I have to admit I kinda forgot about your blog but just remembered and thought I'd come see what you're up to and WOW, a lot of changes in your life recently! I'm so happy that you're back in Japan as it seems to be such a big part of your life so well done! I hope being there again brings you lots of happiness and success <3 Unfortunately I don't have IG but I'll continue to quietly cheer you from the blog sidelines occasionally - I did take a quick look at your IG though, and I just wanted to say I think your new bob super suits you! The length is great and is really flattering, so hopefully you won't miss having long hair too much - it can always grow back! So yeah, keep up the good work out there and remember to feel proud of yourself for taking on all these changes! Best of luck xx

Thank you for popping back! and yeah, everythings been a bit crazy so I've been soo slow with updating over here on the blog... It's been nearly a year since I lopped all my hair off and I'm kind of used to it, but I still miss longer hair- just trying to grow it out slowly and as healthily as possible. I hope you're well too! <3 <3